TRAVEL AND TOURISM
Thailand joined hands at the Together in Asia Pavilion to promote travel to the region and create a stronger impact for Asian package travel. Other co-operative promotions over the year included the Asian Travel Show in Auckland and the Asian Nordic Roadshow in Scandinavia.
Joint promotions with Mainland China as a complementary destination were stepped up during the year. Under the banner of the Dragon Odyssey promotion, Hong Kong joined hands with Beijing, Xian, Shanghai, Guilin and Kunming. This large-scale promotion visited Zurich, Milan, Munich, Frankfurt, Paris and London. About 1000 travel trade personnel and members of the media attended the promotion, during which Hong Kong was positioned as the 'must-see' destination for visitors in any itinerary that features the great cities of China. Other joint initiatives with the Mainland included a China National Tourism Administration/Hong Kong/Macau promotion in Hanover, Bern, Hamburg, Stuttgart and Vienna, and a major promotion (the China Travel & Folklore Festival) in the Mall of America in the USA.
Regular joint promotions with travel industry partners such as hotels and airlines were also conducted in key markets overseas such as Southeast Asia, the Mainland, Taiwan and Japan.
In addition, as part of the pre-event promotion for the large-scale Hong Kong City of Life - Stars Spectacular promotion held in August 1998, the HKTA organised, with the support of the local tourism and entertainment industries, PR blitzes featuring a host of Hong Kong stars to Southeast Asia, Taiwan, Japan and Korea. The performers helped to promote the Stars Spectacular tour package to Hong Kong, a highlight of which was the pop concert in which they starred. More than 8 000 visitors were attracted to Hong Kong as part of this programme.
The HKTA organised a number of 'Contract Hong Kong' events for local hoteliers and travel agents to meet buyers from overseas. More than 60 buyers from Greece, Turkey, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Central and South America were invited to Hong Kong in groups for full-day pre-arranged appointments with local travel trade, enabling them to discuss business directly. Familiarisation visits to Hong Kong's latest tourism products were also organised for the overseas travel trade with good business potentials.
As part of the association's continuing efforts to maintain international awareness of Hong Kong as a tourist destination and help dispel misconceptions, the HKTA organised a series of large-scale familiarisation programmes. More than 5 600 travel trade and media guests visited Hong Kong in 1998. All these programmes featured a comprehensive presentation about Hong Kong, including product updates, messages from the SAR government, an update on Hong Kong's hotels and sightseeing programmes, as well as an introduction to the new Hong Kong International Airport whenever possible.
Special tactical promotions were held in both the summer and winter of 1998 to encourage more visitors to come to Hong Kong in these traditional 'low' seasons. Discounts and bonuses were major features of these promotions.
The Events Capital of Asia
Throughout 1998, the HKTA organised a series of new events and promoted established ones, to market Hong Kong as a year-round travel destination and to
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